In 2011, I began a series of mixed media drawings intended to commemorate and pay tribute to particular individuals in our history that were extremely influential in revising my thinking, so much so that I see their presence in my "becoming" as pivotal. I left the US Navy after 8 years of active service in 1967. Choosing not to go to Officer Candidate School (OCS), and not accepting a promotion, the choice of leaving the service was a crucial one. I wanted change! Immediately entering college after discharge, I began a personal evolution into a totally new person. Camus' book, "The Rebel," was a driving force in that evolution. I began to find new existential "heros" to emulate. I listened carefully, questioning myself constantly. The questioning grew into action, where protestation became protest. Not only physically demonstrating, I began to make artworks that were specifically meant to be activist declarations against war, governmental policy, religious indoctrination, nuclear power, media misrepresentation, and racism. Thinking back to those personally transformative times, I felt the need to pay homage to particular personages that where somehow influential in my life at the time. Rather than seeing these works as memorial pieces, I chose to think of the tragedy of death, violet departure from this world that happened to some of the most important voices of my "revolution." In these works I give tribute, wile at the same time, they stand as sorrowful eulogies dedicated to personal icons.

Reflecting on the times as described, I started to focus on specific personalities and characters that became more important than others. My selections for these drawings ultimately depended on how influential an individual was on my life, in what specific way were they influential, and what resulted within me as a result of their influence. Some contributed to the development of my social leanings, my political choices, to my growth as a graduate student, to the vision and intent I felt in my work, and to my creative construction of a new life and new life style. In this respect, Jackson Pollack's legacy became very important to how I thought about art. As a pivotal choice, Pollack's importance centered around his mysterious and mythological being. I felt his presence within me.